A Russian startup called Promobot is offering consumers a weird and somewhat wonderful (maybe?) opportunity: to buy an autonomous robot of literally anyone in the world. That’s right, you can now date that hot guy from accounting or chill with Ariana Grande in robot form, right in the comfort of your own home.
- It’s called Robo-C. The face has 18 moving parts and can make 600 “micro-expressions,” the manufacturers say. That means it can laugh at your jokes, give you flirty eyes across the table, or even look grossed out by that recipe you made that you know tastes kinda weird…
- It has a massive vocabulary. The robot’s makers gave the artificial intelligence a whopping 100,000 speech modules, meaning it’s actually really intelligent (maybe even more than some real people). That’s pretty impressive!
- It won’t last that long. You’ll have to recharge the robot pretty regularly since the battery life is only about 8 hours. That’s likely largely due to the fact that it’s a “completely anthropomorphic machine” with some pretty advanced tech on board, and that takes a lot of power.
- Is this thing trying to phase out humans or what? The company’s press release suggests that businesses might take a particular interest in the Robo-C, especially since they can serve on the front line of dealing with customers and potentially even replace real customer service agents. Wait, WHAT? “Promobot believes that a robot like this is capable of removing the barrier in human-machine interaction and replacing a number of employees in crowded places– post offices, banks, and municipal institutions.” Hmm…
- If you have tons of money, you can also get one for personal use, of course. “Everyone will now be able to order a robot with any appearance — for professional or personal use. Thus, we open a huge market in service, education and entertainment. Imagine a replica of Michael Jordan selling basketball uniforms and William Shakespeare reading his own texts in a museum?” said Aleksei Iuzhakov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Promobot, in a statement.
- I wonder if it’s a decoy for spying? I mean, it wouldn’t be that hard to believe!
